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Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, has expressed a willingness to collaborate with the US government, marking a shift from the defiant posture she first adopted after the capture of ousted leader Nicolás Maduro.

An Announcement of Collaboration

In a message issued Sunday night, Rodríguez declared she had "invited the US government to cooperate on an agenda of joint work."

Her comments followed just hours after former President Donald Trump threatened that Rodríguez could "pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro" if she did not bend to his wishes.

Leadership Shift in the Country

Rodríguez has assumed de facto control of Venezuela since Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were captured on Saturday. The pair were taken to New York and are scheduled for an appearance at a U.S. court in Manhattan.

She was formally inaugurated as acting president by the supreme court on Saturday. The following day, the military leadership agreed to recognise her leadership, while simultaneously calling for the immediate release of Maduro and his wife.

The Former President's Statements and Approach

Following the surprising apprehension of Maduro, Trump stated that the United States would now "manage" Venezuela "until we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition." He also added that contact had been established with Rodríguez.

On Sunday, he warned that the US might launch a second strike if remaining members of the administration do not cooperate with his plans to get the country "fixed."

Trump's actions have effectively marginalized the nation's political opposition, headed by Nobel laureate María Corina Machado. This tactic has been widely criticised by observers who argue that the regime's power structure remains mostly unchanged – just without Maduro at its head.

Rodríguez's Shifting Posture

In her first public appearance after Maduro's detention, Rodríguez initially struck a defiant tone, declaring that Venezuela would "never again be any other nation's colony."

However, on Sunday night, after chairing her first cabinet meeting, she adopted a significantly more conciliatory tone. Rodríguez released a message stating she considered a "balanced and respectful relationship" with the United States to be a priority.

"We extend an invitation the United States government to collaborate on an agenda of cooperation, aimed at mutual progress, within the confines of global norms, and that strengthens lasting peaceful coexistence," she stated.

A Direct Address to Trump

Speaking to the American ex-president directly, she said: "Mr. Trump: our nations and our hemisphere deserve dialogue and peace, not war. That has always been President Nicolás Maduro’s conviction and it is that of the entire nation at this moment."

"This is the Venezuela I believe in and to which I have devoted myself. My aspiration is for Venezuela to become a great power where all patriotic Venezuelans can unite. Venezuela has the right to peace, development, sovereignty and a future," she concluded.

Contrasting Signals

Despite the conciliatory tone, the Venezuelan government – and Rodríguez herself, via her social media channel – later paid tribute to 32 "Cuban combatants" who were part of Maduro’s security detail and who died "as a consequence of the unlawful and reprehensible attack carried out by the United States."

Earlier on Sunday, the defence minister, Gen Vladímir Padrino López, had said in a statement that US troops had "cold-bloodedly assassinated much of [Maduro’s] security detail, soldiers and non-combatants," without offering specific details or a confirmed count.